[mapserver-users] Newbie questions re shape files and point data

[Andrew Elwell]

Hi folks,

I've downloaded mapserver 3.5 and sucessfully got the demo up and
running (after changing to .png) on a debian box.

However I DON'T have a GIS background so am now stuck...

What I'm trying to achieve is a UK coastline map, with boat tracking
positions marked on it. (see http://www.oytscotland.org.uk)

I've managed to get a shapefile for the UK from esri's website,but it
looks "squashed" - Is this because I haven't set extents?

I have a mysql database of lat / lon (WGS84) positions for the boat
since the start of the season. I assume these will be plotted as points?

If so, how do I create a layer containing the positions for a particular
voyage.

I'm more than happy to teach myself, if someone can point out some
useful URLs.

The other option I wondered about (rather than mapserver) was to use
GRASS and generate an image for each voyage. However, I also know
nothing about GRASS (yet...)

Many thanks for any advice,

Andrew